In 1854, Emily Blackwell became the second woman to earn a medical degree at Western Reserve College (WRC). Her sister, Elizabeth, was the first in the nation to earn a medical degree.
The two sisters, along with WRC alumna Marie Zakrzewska, founded the New York Infirmary for Women—the first hospital run by women for the care of women and children.
Blackwell later founded the Women’s Medical College, serving as dean until it merged with Cornell University’s medical school.
